Tag Archives: 35mm Film

Daejeon 대전

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Daejeon 대전 is quite like Seoul still filled with many shopping malls but I think it’s a little quieter as compared to the city. You must be wondering, why Daejeon? Well, we wanted to experience the KTX train ride (since I’ve never taken a bullet train per say) and with a time/price limitation, Daejeon was one of the safest choice. I wouldn’t say that it was a regret coming here instead of Busan, which was our original plan. But in some sense, I think we should have been a bit more brave to venture out (Definitely the next time round I visit Korea, I’d love to drop by Busan).

The only difference that I noticed is that the width of the subway train is smaller as compared with those in Seoul and people seemed to be nicer. Since we started the journey a little later than planned, we had to cut short our trip by mealy exploring the city area instead of the outskirts which might take about an hour to reach. There is a Science Park since Daejeon is famous for it’s Science and Technology or Research universities especially like KAIST which I had to give it a miss, well, science and me doesn’t goes quite well together. ^^

Not too bad for a short trip out of Seoul – had fun walking and exploring the streets for fun stuff. And I can finally say “I HAVE SAT IN A BULLET TRAIN…. WHEEEEEE!’

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Sights seen from the KTX train.

View from the Daejeon Station – even the air’s way nicer and the sky’s clearer than Seoul, which I think it’s a ++ point.

Excitment!!

KTX Korail Train.

My all time favourite shot of the trip – Introducing my Mom. :D

Gyeongbokgung Palace 경복궁

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A quick continuation on my Korean travel – This is Gyeongbokgung Palace 경복궁 which is one of the major attraction within Seoul itself. I had loads of fun exploring the interior and intricate designs at each ‘palace’. Mind you, the area is HUGE! Like really huge! And I didn’t even get to explore all of the different smaller palaces within this huge compound. I can only say people living during this era has got to have 1. Strong legs 2. Healthy heart 3. A WHOLE LOT OF PATIENCE!

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If you have the stamina to walk all the way in, I believe that you can actually reach to the foot of the mountain? That’s what Mom said so and she was serious about really want to walk up THAT mountain! I almost had a heart attack!! Hmm, but correct me if I’m wrong about Gyeongbokgung Palace being connected to that mountain?

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This is one of the reason why I love Korea too – how this amazing country can fuse modern vs old together and they seem to work well. In Singapore, our town area is usually filled with only modern architectures which is why I think I had lots of fun exploring Korea too. Made myself lookout for interesting stuff instead of taking things for granted.

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Jongno 5-ga (종로5가역)

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Jongno 5-ga (종로5가역) was the area that I stayed in during my trip to Korea. I personally liked how oldish the area was, filled with mostly pharmacies (like tones of them, so fear not if you’re not feeling that well), loads of food eateries to choose from, and I mean LOADS to eat from. But not all is old, there are also a handful of cafes located around.

It’s also conveniently (might take about ~10-15 minutes to walk, 5 minutes if you’re taking the bus and less than 5 if you’re in a cab) near shopping areas like Dongdaemun which has loads of malls for you to shop NON-STOP + till the wee hours in the morning (they practically close at 5AM).

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Gwangjang Market (광장시장) – I totally adore and I think I can spend up to days just exploring the area. It’s quite an underrated market which I think it has lots to offer. I’d go into details in another post with more photos from the digital camera.

On weekends where most of the shops are closed – this area might seemed like a ‘dead town’ but I love how quiet and calm it is in comparison of the bustling city of Seoul (Dongdaemun, Myeongdong).

The stretch that we walk in/out daily from our hotel. On a Monday – Friday basis, this place is basically filled with human traffic all day long because of the eateries and noraebangs that are located within this whole stretch + there are loads of offices around this area.  You’ll never get hungry when you stay in Jongno-5 ga other than the weekends which most of these places are closed.

Lock/Key smith shop with very nice Korean Typography.

The front of a connivence store with the nicest ahjussi who was always smiling. Our daily trips to his mart (that sells basically everything) left us becoming friends and we started talking about how fun Korea is – though at some points he begs to differ. I guess it’s definitely different when your agenda of visiting a country as a tourist vs a permanent stayer.

Concrete Sights

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Seoul’s a pretty cosmopolitan country filled with many buildings which is pretty much like Singapore – not a good/bad thing. But it seems like the buildings in Korea are more structured - ❏❐❑❒. Maybe it’s just my illusion but I don’t seem to spot any round buildings? Have you?

Let’s play “Spot WALLYS”.

Clear skies + geometric building @ Daejoon Station; Korea.

My daily scene while waiting at the bus-stop at the main road of our hotel. I’ve always watched Korean shows with the scene of the actors/actresses heading up to the rooftop to chill/chat – which leaves me wondering what’s up in such roofs?